Brown Velvet, Red Fur (Episode 1)
by Zanza8
Summary: Finnick and Nick walk into trouble when Finnick tries to go straight.
1. Chapter 1

**Episode 1 of Zootopia, The Virtual Season. You can find all the episodes in Zootopia Communities, where the season is listed under my name.**

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Nick leaned against the wall, grinning as he watched Bellwether marched out the door in cuffs. "What a psycho." He looked around for Judy. She was sitting by the pit, staring down into it, and he went over and sat next to her. "You okay, Carrots?"

Judy took one of his paws in both of hers. "I can't stop thinking about what happened after Bellwether shot you." Nick stiffened and she tightened her grip on his paw. "You became everything you were ever accused of...what every predator hates being seen as...you went _savage_ , Nick, to save my life." Her voice shook. "How can I ever thank you?"

He gazed at the soft brown velvet against his rough red fur and it was a moment before he could speak. "Well, you could make another recording for me about how you really are just a dumb bunny."

Judy giggled. "You'll never be sly enough to trick me into doing that again."

"Maybe. Maybe not." Nick stood up. "Come on. We've got to get you to a doctor."

"Wait." Judy swallowed hard. "There's still something I'm scared of, Nick." She pulled a paper from her pocket and held it out. "I don't want to go back to being a cop without a partner."

It was the application to the police academy Nick had filled out before the disastrous press conference and he took it slowly, examining it as if he had never seen it before. "You kept it all this time?"

"You kept my carrot pen all this time." Judy smiled. "What do you say?"

Nick bent down and scooped her up in his arms, his sharp green eyes locking onto her soft purple ones. "You really want me to be your partner?" Judy nodded, snuggling against him, and he smiled. "Then I guess I say, as you wish."


	2. Chapter 2

_Six months later:_

Nick stood in the doorway of the tiny apartment next to Judy, scowling at Finnick as the tiny fox howled with laughter. "This where you living, Nick? Greasy walls, rickety bed…"

"Shut up!" screamed the antelope next door.

Finnick's eyes bulged and he bellowed back, " _You_ shut up or I'm gonna open up a can of whup ass on you!"

There was silence and the bunny marveled, "That's the first time they've been quiet since I moved in."

The fennec fox rolled his eyes. "You lie down, they're gonna step on you. And speaking of stepping, Nick, you coming out or you got to stay in?" He cocked an ear at Judy and she balled up her tiny paws.

"Nick can go wherever he wants whenever he wants!" the bunny sputtered indignantly. "I'm not his keeper! I don't even live here!" She stomped across the hall to her own apartment and slammed the door so hard the crooked picture on the fox's wall righted itself.

Nick winced and glared at Finnick. "What did you do that for?"

Finnick chuckled. "I like to see her nose twitch. She's all right."

The red fox's expression softened. "Yeah, she is."

"So you coming?"

Nick gave his friend a searching look. "Were you serious? You're going straight?"

"Would I lie?" asked Finnick, his eyes wide. Nick didn't answer and the little fox grinned. "Would I lie to _you_?"

"In a heartbeat."

"Not about this, Nick. I got a real opportunity here."

The red fox sighed. "I still don't see what you need me for."

"I just want you to check it out, make sure it's on the up and up. I'm almost forty years old. 'Bout time I started thinking about my old age. I don't want to live in a van for the rest of my life."

Nick gestured around the apartment. "Believe it or not, the Grand Pangolin Arms always has vacancies for anyone looking for a luxury apartment with charm."

"You think I want to live in a dump like this? You were better off under the bridge." Finnick headed out.

Nick followed him, carefully locking the door. "Under the bridge I didn't have complementary delousing once a month."

Judy fumed as she watched her partner and his friend from her window. Finnick wasn't around much, but whenever he showed up, he pushed every button she had. It was impossible to stay annoyed with him, though. He wasn't the cute little fox she thought he was the day they met, but he really did care about Nick and that meant a lot to her. She would never forget the day she went to Finnick to help her find Nick.


	3. Chapter 3

_Judy drove her father's truck slowly along the streets of Zootopia, scanning the side streets and back alleys until she saw a battered red van with a mural of a wolf warrior carrying a fox maiden. She pulled up behind the van, took a deep breath, and got out of the truck to knock softly on the back door. The response was startling as Finnick tore open the door, baseball bat in paw, shouting, "Who is it?" His ferocious glare softened as he saw it was only Judy, and he listened as she told him she was looking for Nick, and then he slammed the door in her face._

 _Judy's first impulse was to pound on the door until Finnick opened it again. Forcing herself to count to ten, then a hundred, she had to admit that his reaction was perfectly natural. For all she knew, Nick was the only friend Finnick had in the world, and she had not only hurt Nick, she had damaged the relations between prey and predators in the whole city. She doubted the little fox's normal response to a knock on his door was to come out ready for a fight. Anything could have happened to him in the months since Judy left Zootopia. Anything could have happened to Nick. They might both have been tormented, perhaps even beaten up, because of the trouble she had caused. Tears came to her eyes and she knocked again on Finnick's door, so gently she wondered if even his big ears would hear it._

 _He heard. "Rabbit, get lost. Nick don't want nothing to do with you."_

 _She knocked again and Finnick pulled the door open. "You got a hearing problem?"_

 _"Yes." Judy wrung her paws. "I **heard** what Nick said but I didn't **listen**. He told me happened to him when he was a kit, and all I could think about was my career, and how I wanted to be a real cop…" She swallowed hard. "And I said all those stupid things, and…and when Nick got upset with me, I...I had that fox repellent and…"_

 _The little fox considered the distraught bunny. "You still carry it?"_

 _Judy held out her arms and turned around. "I threw it away after Nick left. I would never have something like that again. I know I don't deserve it, but I'm asking for your help. I don't want to hurt Nick. I need **his** help, and after this is over, I promise I'll never bother either of you again."_

 _Finnick hesitated, then closed the door of the van, and Judy's shoulders slumped. She turned sadly away and started towards her truck, then her ears popped up at the sound of the door of Finnick's van opening. "Take this before I change my mind," he said gruffly, holding out a piece of paper._

 _Judy went back and reached for the paper but Finnick pulled it back. "You better understand something. I go back almost twenty years with Nick and I don't got no problem coming for you if you do anything to him again." Judy gulped and nodded and Finnick threw the paper at her and shut the door._

Finnick had drawn a map leading to the bridge Nick lived under, and Judy still felt a muted echo of the sorrow that had come over her as she realized that when Nick talked about emotional squalor and living under a bridge, he was referring to himself. Well, he was living under a roof now. This building might not be a great place, but it was better than the bridge. It was a start. Judy smiled to herself, thinking of the look on Nick's face when she pinned his badge on him. He was finally a member of a pack, finally living up to that long-ago oath of being brave and loyal and helpful and trustworthy. He was all of those things to her and she couldn't ask for a better partner.

Judy sighed, turning away from the window. Nick and Finnick were out of sight and she wondered what the opportunity was the fennec fox wanted Nick to check out. Finnick was just as streetwise as his big friend, what did he think Nick could learn that he couldn't? Unless it was because Nick was now a cop and could verify if everything was legal. Maybe Finnick really _was_ going straight. That would be a relief. She didn't doubt Nick's commitment to his new life, but she was always slightly uneasy whenever he was eating one of those pawpsicles, a constant reminder that Finnick was still hustling. If Finnick really did turn over a new leaf and become a law-abiding citizen, it would be better for all of them. The two antelopes next door were arguing in a subdued tone, and the bunny smiled wryly. Finnick did have his uses. He was Nick's oldest friend, and in a strange way, after taking a _really_ long time to warm up to her, he was Judy's friend too, and she was suddenly very glad he had come to Nick today. Everything was going to turn out great!


	4. Chapter 4

"Finn?"

"What!"

"Tell me again about this great opportunity to go straight."

Nick and Finnick were tied up in an empty office, their fur in tatters and their clothes torn from the terrific fight they had put up, and the fennec fox was in no mood for his friend's snark. "How was I supposed to know it was a chop shop?" The red fox gave his friend a dirty look and Finnick snapped, "I heard there was a garage for sale. Seemed like the perfect opportunity, how long I been keeping that van running? It even had an apartment over the garage. I didn't know they was running it as a chop shop."

Nick sighed, trying to ignore the ache in his head where someone had hit him with a crowbar and knocked him out. He had woken before Finnick and spent the time waiting for his friend to open his eyes studying their prison. For an office, it seem to be very solidly built, and the ropes were expertly tied. And far too tight. Nick pulled again on his paws, wincing as the bonds cut into him. "Who did you hear about this place from?"

"The fox who owned it! What's the world coming to when you can't even trust another fox!" Finnick was sporting the biggest black eye Nick had ever seen. It looked like the artist with the crowbar had taken a swing at him too. "You didn't have to walk in and see what was going on and tell everybody they was under arrest."

The red fox glared. "I'm a cop. That's what cops do."

"I thought cops called for backup when they see something too big to handle by themselves," sneered Finnick. His friend blinked, taken aback by the valid criticism, and the little fox shrugged. "Don't sweat it. You're right. I _should_ have known something was wrong. I must be slipping, the price was way too low. Guess the owner wanted to get out while the getting was good and he found himself a sucker."

"You're not a sucker, Finn." Nick grinned. "You're just not used to thinking like a law-abiding citizen. We'll have to take you on some ride alongs. A few shifts with Judy and you won't recognize yourself, you'll be so straight and narrow."

"Pass," grumbled Finnick.

"So tell me about this fox."

Finnick shrugged. "His name is Vlad…" Nick groaned and his friend's eyes widened. "You know him?"

"Arctic fox? Kind of chubby, with a twitchy eye?" When Finnick nodded, Nick said, "Yeah, I know him. Vladmir Smirnov. I met him a couple of times at Mr Big's. He was supposed to be legit, Mr Big had a contract with him to work on all his cars. I caught him coming out of one of the polar bear's bedrooms with a gold watch, and he told me if I said anything to Mr Big, he'd accuse _me_ of stealing it. What could I do? His dad and Mr Big's father were tight, he grew up with Mr Big like a brother. I just stayed away if I knew he was going to be there. If you had told me _he_ was the one with the garage…" Nick shrugged. "Not your fault. I should have asked before we went. Next time I'll run a background check before we go anywhere."

"You really think there's gonna be a next time?" asked Finnick grimly. "You a cop, remember? They let us go, they know you'll be back."

"I'm not worried," said Nick. "Judy and me, we have a bond. She'll know I'm in trouble. She'll just feel that something's wrong, and she'll come for me. She's probably already out combing the streets."


	5. Chapter 5

"Oh, my Gawd, that is the cutest thing I have ever seen!" squealed Fru Fru. Judy smiled and set down the stroller she had bought for her goddaughter, little Judy. It was hot pink and built like a sports car, with racing stripes and fuzzy pink dice and a white steering wheel, and Fru Fru put her daughter in it and spun it around for Mr Big to admire. "Daddy, isn't it adorable?"

Mr Big smiled benignly at Judy. "Child, you have done well. Thank you for your generosity to my granddaughter."

"Take a picture, Daddy!" Fru Fru pushed the stroller next to her father, beckoning excitedly to the big polar bear hovering over the table. "Judy, you get in the picture too!" They posed, the polar bear snapped the picture, and Fru Fru clasped the rabbit's paws. "We gotta take it out for a spin! I know, let's go to the park."

"I'm not supposed to go into Little Rodentia," said Judy apologetically.

"You don't have to," said Mr Big. "Fru Fru, Kevin will drive you to the new park next to the Natural History Museum. It has a small rodents section." He took out his wallet. "Here's a hundred, baby. Have a good time."


	6. Chapter 6

Fru Fru pushed the stroller along, humming contentedly as little Judy played with the steering wheel. There was a horn that went _toot-toot_ and the baby squeezed it every few seconds, laughing delightedly, until they stopped beside a rose bed and took her out to play on the grass.

"So, how's Nicky?" asked Fru Fru.

"He's good," Judy answered. "He graduated the police academy…"

"Oh, I know _that_!" Fru Fru waved a tiny paw. "And he's workin' as your partner, and he moved into your buildin'…"

"He's got his own apartment," said Judy swiftly.

"I know that too," Fru Fru giggled. "Daddy has friends all over. What I really meant was, how are _you_ and Nicky?"

Judy stammered, "Well, he's a good partner. He's brave and loyal and...and…"

"Oh, honey, please!" Fru Fru was looking at Judy as if the rabbit had suddenly sprouted an extra head. "I had a crush on Nicky for _years_. You gonna say you never noticed how hot he is?"

Judy was saved from having to reply by the approach of a chubby arctic fox with a twitchy eye. "Fru Fru! Lubimaya!"

"Oh, hello, Vlad," said Fru Fru coldly. Kevin, the polar bear guard, started forward and she shook her head. He retreated and the fox smiled greasily at little Judy.

"And this is your karapuz? What is his name?"

"She's a girl and her name is Judy." Fru Fru scooped the baby up and put her in the stroller. "I wasn't expectin' to see you, Vlad. I heard you was leavin' town."

"I am, I am." The fox smiled broadly. "I just had one last piece of business to conduct. I am selling my chop shop."

Judy pushed the stroller back and forth, trying to ignore the conversation. Sometimes visiting Fru Fru was so awkward. The tiny shrew was not a criminal but because she was surrounded by them, things came up that Judy felt she should act on as a cop. Nick insisted it was more important to maintain good relations with Mr Big than to nab every two-bit hood she heard about, and he was right, but it was difficult. Then Vlad said something that made her ears pop up.

"...a fennec fox."

"Excuse me?" Judy stood up. "What did you say?"

Vlad eyed her and Fru Fru made the introductions. "Vladimir Smirnov, this is my friend and little Judy's godmother, Judy Hopps." She paused, then went on slowly. " _Officer_ Judy Hopps."

The fox started. "Blen, look at the time! I must be on my way."

Judy caught him by the arm. "Not so fast. You said something about a fennec fox. What was his name?"

"I do not know his name!" Vlad pulled at his arm but Judy kept a tight hold on it. "All I know is what he is called. Finnick."

"You were selling a fennec fox named Finnick your chop shop?"

The arctic fox licked his lips. "He did not know it was a chop shop. I told him it was a garage. And I told the hippos to be out of it last night and not to come back. I am not doing anything wrong to be selling a garage that _used_ to be a chop shop."

Judy gritted her teeth. She was all too familiar with the way crooks crawled through loopholes. Nick and Finnick had been masters of the technique when she met them, and she still hated the way the law could be exploited. "Where is Finnick now?"

"I do not know!" Vlad threw up his paws. "He was supposed to see the garage and call me if he liked it. He has not called me. Perhaps he did not like it."

Fru Fru drew herself up to her full height of three inches. "And perhaps your crew went back to take apart one last car and he walked into them?"

"Oh, no." Judy was staring at Fru Fru with a horrified expression. "Nick was with Finnick. He wanted Nick to check out the garage."

"Kevin!" Fru Fru shrieked. "Take Vlad to Daddy!"

"No icing," said Judy. "I need him alive." She glared at the fox. "And before you go, you're going to do something for me." She took out her cell phone and opened the notepad. "What's the address of this chop shop?"


	7. Chapter 7

"Radio check."

Clawhauser's voice echoed around the interior of the police van and Chief Bogo tapped a button. "Loud and clear."

"It looks like the hippos are finishing up the car they were stripping. No sign of Nick or his friend. I'm going in."

"Copy that." Bogo sighed and sat back, smiling reassuringly at Judy. "Don't look so worried, Hopps. You may not believe it to look at him now, but Clawhauser was the leanest, meanest recruit in his class. And a good field officer, until…" He fell silent for a moment, then went on quietly. "We were partners once, a long time ago. There was a case we'd been working for months, a beaver trafficking ring. A group of rhinos was getting young beavers from the country to come to Zootopia by promising them jobs and then selling them on the street. We broke it up, but one of the rhinos almost gored me in the back." He smiled a little, shaking his head. "Almost. Clawhauser got in the way. He saved my life. He was almost torn in half, the doctors didn't think he'd make it, but he's pretty tough. He wasn't able to go back to field work, so they put him on a desk. That's how he got so fat, sitting behind that desk, eating donuts…"

"I never would have guessed," murmured Judy. "He's always so...cheerful."

"He is now," Bogo mused. "For a while, after he was cleared for limited duty, he was in a pretty dark place. He came out of it, though." He saw Judy's eyes melting with sympathy and he cleared his throat. "He's still a good cop. If Wilde is in there, Clawhauser will find him."

The cheetah in question walked into the garage, scanning the interior with deceptively lazy eyes. He had traded his uniform for black fatigues and a white undershirt and draped several gold chains around his neck. A red cap, backwards, completed his ensemble, but it was not the clothes that made him look so different. His face was blank, his normally happy eyes hard and cold as one of the hippos came up to him. "You want something?"

"I heard this is the place to bring a car." Even Clawhauser's voice was different, lower and with an angry edge to it.

"What kind of car?"

"Furrari. Brand new, turbo charged...you want it or don't you?"

The hippo hesitated. "You got any papers to prove it's yours?"

Clawhauser's eyes narrowed. "You a cop?" He shot out a paw and gripped the hippo by the shirt. "You wearing a wire?"

The hippo pulled away. "What's your problem!" He brushed off his shirt. "You got that car now? We ain't supposed to be here, the boss is selling the place, but if you can bring it in right now, we'll take it."

"Where's your boss?" Clawhauser came further into the garage, heading for the door in the back. "Maybe I better talk to him."

The hippo stuck out an arm. "Ain't nothing back there."

"Whatever." Clawhauser took one last look around. "Guess I'll go get that car. Say, is there a donut shop around here?"

Back in the van, Bogo grabbed the radio. "We just got the word. Let's roll."

Sirens blaring, cops descended on the garage, grabbing the hippos and throwing them against the wall. Clawhauser made a beeline for the door he had noticed, throwing it open just as Bogo and Judy arrived. "Oh, no."

Judy pushed him to one side, gasping in horror. Finnick sat against the wall, his eyes furious over the tape the hippos had wrapped around his jaws. And Nick...he was curled in a ball, whimpering, scraping his head frantically against the floor. They had used so much tape on his face that even his nose was almost invisible. Clawhauser began untying Finnick's bonds while Judy approached her partner.

"Nick?" He didn't seem to hear her and she knelt beside him, laying a gentle paw on his shoulder. He pulled away as if she had burned him. Judy looked helplessly up at Bogo and the cape buffalo came over and pinned Nick to the floor so Judy could remove the tape. The red fox struggled, snarling deep in his throat, until the last of the tape was off and Judy pulled him into her arms, murmuring soothingly to him as Bogo sliced through the ropes, his jaw tightening as he saw the cuts where Nick had pulled trying to get himself loose.

Finnick came over, shaking his head. "They didn't want us talking. After they muzzled me, he went crazy. It took two of them to hold him down so the third one…" He couldn't go on. Judy was whispering to Nick, so softly that even Finnick's sensitive ears could barely pick up what she was saying, words of comfort and love he would never repeat to a living soul. The little fox never knew how long he stood there before Nick finally stopped shaking and turned his head to meet his friend's eyes.

The red fox struggled to speak. "Finn? You okay?"

Finnick managed a smile. "Sure, Nick. So are you. You gonna be just fine."

Clawhauser came forward. "I called for an ambulance."

Nick got slowly to his feet, feeling his face to make sure the muzzling tape was gone. "I don't need an ambulance."

"You'll get in it anyway," said Bogo sternly. "You'll go to the hospital, you'll get checked out, and then you'll write a full report of this whole incident. Is that clear, Wilde?"

Judy glared at the chief but a spark lit in Nick's eyes. "Yes, sir."

They started out, Nick leaning heavily on Judy while Finnick trailed behind them, watching how she stopped and changed sides so she was between Nick and the hippos. The fennec fox smiled to himself. That bunny really was something. Annoying as hell, but the best thing that ever happened to Nick. Maybe someday…

Finnick's reverie was interrupted by a scuffle between one of the hippos and a cop, a big lion. The hippo was resisting being searched and a wolf moved in to help, then the hippo shoved them both aside and brought out a gun, pointing it straight at Judy. Finnick didn't even have time to shout a warning. All he could do was throw himself in front of the bunny just as the gun fired. Half a dozen cops tackled the hippo, wrestling him to the ground as Finnick went down, red blood staining his brown fur.


	8. Chapter 8

Judy lost the argument as they approached the cemetery. "You really don't like the flowers?"

Nick shrugged. "Finn never was a flowers kind of guy."

"Fine!"

She threw the bouquet over the cemetery fence. "That's littering, you know," said Nick disapprovingly. "I could write you a two hundred dollar citation."

"Go ahead," said Judy coolly. "I'll tell the judge it was your fault."

" _My_ fault! How is it my fault?"

"Oh, I'll think of something." Judy pointed to herself. "Sly bunny." She pointed to Nick. "Dumb fox."

They were still snarking at each other when they walked into Finnick's room. He took one look and snarled, "Don't you two got no respect for a sick fox?"

"Oh, please." Nick pulled up a chair and sat next to the bed, propping his feet up on the covers. Finnick swiped at them and Nick put them on the floor, grinning. "You're milking it. The doctor said you barely got a crease on your head."

"Don't listen to him, Finnick," said Judy indignantly. "You're a real hero. The mayor wants to give you a medal for saving my life."

The little fox looked embarrassed. "I didn't do nothing. Just tripped, that's all. Had the bad luck to fall in front of a bullet."

The bunny smiled gently. "I know, Finnick. It was just an accident." Their eyes locked and for one brief moment, all the things they would never speak of shone in their gaze, then Judy said briskly, "You don't have to get a medal if you don't want one, but there _is_ somebody who's very eager to meet you."


	9. Chapter 9

"So this is the fox who saved the life of the godmother of my granddaughter." Mr Big bowed his head to Finnick. "I am in your debt, and I like to be generous when discharging an obligation. How can I repay you for your bravery?"

"You don't got to repay me nothing," said Finnick, his normal surly tone tempered by respect for the huge polar bears surrounding the tiny shrew. Nick and Judy exchanged a glance and the bunny came forward.

"Actually, Finnick, Mr Big _does_ have an opportunity if you're interested."

"No offense, but I want to go straight," Finnick said evenly.

Nick put a paw on his friend's shoulder. "Maybe you should hear what the opportunity is before you decide, Finn."

The fennec fox shrugged. "I'm listening."

Mr Big gestured to one of the polar bears, who brought out a set of keys. "These are the keys to the garage that Vlad was going to sell you, and to the apartment above the garage. They are yours if you want them."

Finnick glared at the shrew. "That's your opportunity? A chop shop?"

The polar bears closed in around him and Mr Big raised a tiny paw. They stopped and the shrew smiled at Finnick. "I like you. You have spirit, like Nicky, and my granddaughter's godmother. The chop shop was Vlad's operation. I knew about it, but I didn't use it, or take a percentage of it. And now that Vlad and his crew have been sent to prison, the garage is a business without an owner. It would benefit me if you were that owner. You could take over Vlad's contract to service my cars, free of charge, of course…"

"Of course," said Finnick dryly but he looked interested.

"It would be your business, completely legitimate." Mr Big leaned forward. "You can accept or reject my offer, but know that you are now family and you will always be treated with generosity and respect in my home."

Finnick hesitated and Nick reached out to take the keys. "Tell you what, Finn, how about we go check this place out like you wanted to do in the first place. You don't have to give Mr Big an answer right this minute."

The tiny shrew sat back in his chair. "Take all the time you want."


	10. Chapter 10

"So Finnick decided to take over the garage?" asked Judy.

Nick nodded. "Yeah, he thought he'd give it a try." They were strolling through the big park down the street from their apartment house and it was getting dark enough for the streetlights to come on. "He's even willing to let you bring a housewarming gift." Judy's nose twitched with excitement and Nick held up a warning paw. "A _little_ one. Maybe a plant. Something that won't die if he forgets to water it."

"I'll get him a Tillandsia Tectorum." Nick just looked at her and Judy smiled to herself. He was so adorable when he was clueless. And Fru Fru was right. He _was_ hot. The bunny shook herself. She couldn't take the risk of trying for something more than friendship with Nick. If it didn't work out, she could lose him, and she knew she could never bear that. Bringing her mind back to the plant, she said nonchalantly, "It's a furry white air plant. As long as he sprays it with water every day, it should be fine."

"Sounds good," said Nick. Judy skipped with delight and his heart turned over. She was the sweetest animal he had ever known and sometimes he wondered if she could ever feel more than just friendship for him, but he always stopped short when his daydreams threatened to take over. Judy's friendship meant far too much to him to risk trying for something more. He could lose her, and he knew he could never bear that. His stomach growled, bringing him back to the present where the night was warm and the stars were brightening the sky and he smiled. "What do you say, Carrots? Want to get some dinner?"


End file.
